BOSTON - As U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry jetted to Israel on Monday in an attempt to revive faltering peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, Israeli members of parliament visiting Boston reacted with mixed emotions, ranging from cautious optimism to strong pessimism.

The parliamentarians, who spanned the political spectrum of Israeli politics, also gave mixed reviews of Democratic President Barack Obama’s approach to Israel.

“(Obama) knows the history, we all know the history,” Nachman Shai, a member of the left-leaning Labor Party said. “There were presidents, secretary of states, special envoys, army generals. Who didn’t try (to make peace)? And they all failed…The fact that the secretary of state – and this president - is ready to jump into the cold water and swim is very encouraging.”

It is less encouraging to Shuli Mualem-Refaeli, of the right-leaning HaBayit HaYehudi (Jewish Home) Party. She worries that U.S. pressure on Israel to reach an agreement with the Palestinians will hurt Israeli and result in more terrorism. “It looks for us like Kerry and President Obama take the Palestinian narrative and goes with it,” Mualem-Refaeli said.

Six members of the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, are spending three days in Boston as part of a trip sponsored by the Ruderman Family Foundation to educate Israeli leaders about the American Jewish community. On Monday, they attended a lunch with Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, treasurer and gubernatorial candidate Steve Grossman, U.S. Rep. Michael Capuano and state legislators. They are also attending events at Harvard, Brandeis and Northeastern universities.

Polling indicates that Obama’s approval rating is low in Israel. One recent poll, cited in Time magazine, found that 70 percent of Israelis do not trust the American president to safeguard their interests in negotiations with the Palestinians. Obama angered some Israelis early on in his presidency with comments he made on Israel’s future borders; Kerry recently incited a firestorm by talking about the threat of international boycotts of Israel should talks with the Palestinians fall through.

But in brief interviews with The Republican/MassLive.com, the six parliamentarians – who represent five political parties – indicated that Israeli opinion is far from monolithic. Israel is a parliamentary democracy, with numerous parties and factions.

Shai acknowledged, “(Obama) would not be elected president if he runs in Israel.” But at the same time, he said, “I think (U.S.-Israel) relations has never been that good as it is today…A lot is going on between the two countries – military cooperation, intelligence cooperation, diplomatic ties, America supports Israel internationally.”

Itzik Shmuli, of the Labor Party, said he appreciates the Obama administration’s efforts. “It seems to me that sometimes (Kerry) understands something that our leaders on both sides do not understand, and this is what is the real interest of the Israeli people and Palestinian people,” Shmuli said. “I hope this in the end will bring us an agreement which is based on the two-state solution.” Separate states for the Israelis and Palestinians, he said, “is the only way to ensure the existence of Israel as a Jewish and Democratic state” and the only way to ensure security through recognized borders.

Kerry’s trip to Israel comes at a crucial time for the peace process. Kerry wanted to achieve a peace deal by April, but when that failed, he set a goal of creating a framework agreement for future negotiations. As part of the negotiations, Israel agreed to release four groups of Palestinian prisoners, the last ones at the end of March. But Israel is balking at the final release unless Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas agrees to extend talks beyond April. With the talks in danger of falling apart – as have countless rounds of previous talks during the past decades – Kerry made a last minute trip to revive them.

Shimon Ohayon, a Knesset member from Likud-Yisrael Beitenu (Israel is Our Home), a right-leaning party, said everybody hopes Kerry succeeds. But he said Palestinian leaders have rejected multiple deals under previous prime ministers, and the sticking point will be the details. “Of course, we have to insist on our demands, for example talking about the recognition of the state of Israel as our Jewish homeland and to make sure we have our own security,” Ohayon said.

Israeli member of parliament Nachman Shai of the Labor Party poses for a picture in Harvard Square in Cambridge on March 31, 2014.SHIRA SCHOENBERG / THE REPUBLICAN

Ohayon said Israelis are cautious because of the environment they live in, surrounded by unfriendly governments such as Syria and Egypt, which are still dealing with the aftereffects of the Arab Spring. “Israelis are really worried because of what’s happening right now,” Ohayon said. “It’s not easy for us to release all these terrorists. Don’t forget we have families that these terrorists killed their children, killed their parents.”

Shimon Solomon, of the centrist Yesh Atid (There is a Future) party, which supports the peace process, said more strongly, “We need to succeed.”

“We cannot continue the situation that we have now, just talking and talking. We have to take a position,” Solomon said. Solomon said Israel is stronger than its Arab neighbors and should make concessions, such as releasing prisoners, to achieve peace. “As the strong country, we can…take the chance,” Solomon said.

However, Mualem-Refaeli does not want to take those chances. She does not believe in a two-state solution, but in one Jewish state. She is frustrated that the U.S. and others pressure Israel to release prisoners and stop building settlements. “In our north, in Syria, people are murdered every day and all over the world, silence,” she said.

Mualem-Refaeli hopes to see Kerry “speak about our rights in Israel, that Israel is a Jewish, democratic state.”

On the opposite side of the aisle, Michal Rozin, of the secular-left Meretz Party, wants Israel to make concessions. But she does not think Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, of the right-wing Likud Party, will.

“I think he wants the negotiations to keep going because it’s giving him quiet and peace all over the world, especially from the United States and Europe, but I don’t think his intention is sincere…He didn’t pass the Rubicon,” Rozin said.

“Hopefully, someone will put his fist on the table and say enough is enough stop stalling, but I don’t see Kerry doing it more than he did until now,” Rozin said.

Rozin is pessimistic about Kerry’s chances. “I think that if in this stage the negotiations will fail, we’re going to another circle of violence and it’s a vicious circle, going back to violence and again to negotiation and again to violence,” Rozin said. “Until the leaders of both sides will really want to have a final agreement between them, nothing will happen.”